Something radical is happening in the staid world of electricity production. While most people give little thought to where their electricity comes from, the deregulation of the power industry now under way in a number of states means that, for the first time, consumers will have a choice of how the electricity that they pay for is produced. And in states that have already deregulated their electricity monopolies, consumers are increasingly choosing renewable energy sources, such as wind power, over cheaper but more highly polluting coal and other fossil fuels.

A startup called GreenMountain.com is the company moving most aggressively to take advantage of this "green" preference in what the U.S. Department of Energy estimates is a $217 billion electricity market. Indeed, by making the choice of renewable energy just a mouse click away, Vermont-based GreenMountain hopes to establish itself as the green brand of energy. "I want to be the Starbucks, the Coca-Cola, and the Ben & Jerry's of electricity all rolled up into one," says Dennis Kelly, GreenMountain's president and CEO.